For the locals: Independent councillor Andrew Rowse charts a new path to Town Hall

Andrew Rowse has entered the City of Melbourne with a clear mandate for change – and a determination to do things differently.

Elected as an independent and running a self-funded campaign, Cr Rowse brings a background in innovation and a strong community focus to his new role.

With no political affiliations and a pragmatic approach shaped by his work at the University of Melbourne, he aims to prioritise residents’ needs and restore trust in local government.

“It’s been really exciting. It is very much a new world for me, and so far, I’ve loved every minute of it,” he said.

A familiar face in the city’s startup and innovation scene, Cr Rowse heads the entrepreneurial centre at the University of Melbourne, where he works closely with researchers and emerging businesses.

Without financial backing and while managing a full-time job, his grassroots campaign turned into both an endurance challenge and an opportunity to log impressive miles on his Strava.

I’d be working nine to five, I’d knock off at five o’clock, I’d drive to whatever suburb was next on my list, and I’d letterbox drop until two or three in the morning

“It was exhausting, but I absolutely loved it. I saw things that I didn’t know we even had in the city.”

The community response, he said, was overwhelmingly positive.

“I think people are just genuinely sick of the partisan fighting. Having someone who was outside of all that enabled me to come in and look at every issue on its merit.”

Now in office, Cr Rowse is concentrating on amplifying the city’s innovation ecosystem and returning to grassroots values.

“We’ve got so many great innovations, but we just haven’t quite figured out how to crack into that and unleash the really cool things that are happening,” he said.

“And I want to make sure we’re delivering for our most important stakeholders – our residents.”

“We all geographically live here within Melbourne, and the only other thing I believe we can all have in common is shared values. If we fail to establish those values, then a multicultural community like we have in Melbourne will never truly thrive.”

A self-described “nerd” with an engineering background, Cr Rowse is relishing the behind-the-scenes view of council operations.

“To have the privilege of seeing how so many different areas work is just so intellectually exciting.”

Cr Rowse has already made the most of his new role, highlighting his welcome speech at the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra’s free summer concert series as a particularly meaningful experience.

A long-time attendee of the event, he described the opportunity to address the crowd as a “childhood dream” come true.

“I’ve always been someone who has said ‘yes’ to opportunity. To me, this is a massive opportunity and responsibility, and I don’t take that lightly.”

“Local politics should be about the locals – taking the party out of party politics. That’s why I’ve loved my journey so far.” •